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Monday, February 04, 2008

Skinny by Ibi Kaslik

This novel, told in two different perspectives, focuses on the effects of an eating disorder on the sufferer and her family. Giselle is a med-student who suffers from anorexia, partly due to some "daddy issues." She is obsessed with why her father never seemed to love her, which she figures is due to the fact that she might not be his daughter. This, and her eating disorder, affects her ability to be loved by someone else, particularly her new boyfriend Sol. The other narrator of the novel is Giselle's sister Holly who seems to be struggling with life in general. Most of that is complicated by Giselle's problems.As I reflect on this novel, it's hard to write about because the story felt so disjointed. It wasn't a fluid narration and I'm not just talking about the alternating narrators. It felt as though it was just snippets of these characters' lives rather than a continuous saga. The novel, in my opinion, was too reflective and somewhat confusing because it didn't seem to go anywhere. The ending, in particular, confused me. I didn't know what happened with either of the characters in the last two chapters. I wanted more concrete solutions to the problems the novel presented, but there weren't any. One aspect of the novel that I did like was the voice Giselle heard, the voice that promoted her disorder. That was a good technique to show her struggle. This book was disappointing. I didn't feel as though it went anywhere or really did anything. It felt a little to disjointed and artsy for my opinion. I'm sure the author was trying to portray some bigger message, but it got lost on me.MMK